The AJ Saga: When The Aliens Come Rewritten
by NotCrazyJustWeird97
Summary: AJ Mason is now fourteen, instead of eleven. Just a few minor grammatical changes. Please R&R. Constructive criticism is accepted, but anything along the lines of, "This is shit, take it down" will be removed. Enjoy :
1. Chapter 1

My name is Ali Jessica Mason. I go by AJ. Six months ago our planet was invaded by aliens. We call them skitters and mechs. I was thirteen then, and I'm fourteen now. I have three brothers, Hal, who's seventeen, Ben, who's fourteen (my twin), and Matt, who's eight. When the skitters came, they took Ben and they killed my mom. I have straight dark brown hair that comes down to my elbows and has bangs, deep brown eyes and pale skin. I always wear camo cargo pants, combat boots, black t-shirts, a black leather jacket and leather fingerless gloves in, guess what colour. Black. I'm pretty small too, which can come in handy sometimes. I'm only small because I was premature. Hal and I are really close. I like his girlfriend, Karen, she's really nice. I'm also really close to my dad. And now, my story begins. So strap in for the ride.

_**Falling Skies **_

"Dad, I wanna go with you," I said.

"AJ, no." He sighed.

"But, Dad -" I began.

"AJ, you can't come in case you get hurt," Hal said. "If you get hurt, I'll be really upset, okay? It'd kill me. So you need to stay here and look after Matt for us until we get back."

"Fine." I huffed.

"Next time you can come with us, okay? But not now."

"You promise I can go with you next time?" I asked, a grin spreading across my face.

"I promise," he assured me.

"Pinkie swear on it?" I beamed.

"Aren't you a little old for pinkie swears?"

"You're never too old for pinkie swears," I said determinedly, holding up my little finger. He wrapped his around it and ruffled my hair.

"See you when we get back, squirt," he said.

"Be careful because if you get hurt I will kick your ass," I warned. He hit me lightly upside the head.

"Don't swear," he said. He and Dad walked out to get food. I went over to Matt, who was sleeping in a chair. So I decided to go talk to Karen.

"Hey." I grinned.

"Hey, AJ," she replied. "What's up?"

"Hal and Dad have gone out and Matt's asleep, so I'm bored," I shrugged.

"Well, I think I've got some old beauty products. I could maybe do your hair for you," she offered. I smiled and nodded. She pulled out a hairbrush and some hair bands, and began styling my hair in an intricate French braid. She also painted my nails a nice forest green colour. I hugged her gently.

"Thanks, Karen. I'm glad Hal's with you, and not anyone else," I said.

_**Falling Skies**_

When Dad and Hal came in I was doing art therapy with Anne.

"What are you drawing there, AJ?" she asked.

"The way things were before, and the way they are now," I answered. She held up another picture.

"Who's this?"

"It's Mom. I miss her. I miss her a lot." A lump rose in my throat and as hard as I tried to hold back tears, a few slipped out. She placed a hand on my shoulder. I brushed away the tears and turned round. I ran over to Hal and threw my arms round his waist.

"Hal! You're back!" I cried, burying my face into his jacket.

"You got it, squirt," he replied.

"I just had art therapy with Anne," I said.

"Let's go see what you drew," he suggested. I was good at drawing. It was one of my few skills, along with being able to shoot. But I wasn't athletic, I was smart, and I wasn't able to reach things in high places, but I was quick. He walked with over to Dad and Anne. She was showing Dad pictures that Matt had drawn. Hal looked at them.

"That doesn't not look like me," he said.

"Or me," I added.

"And AJ drew these." Anne smiled, giving Dad my drawings.

"Now that looks like me." Hal grinned. I'd got the nose right, and the bones structure, and the hair and the ears. But the eyes went a bit weird.

"Can I keep these?" Dad asked me.

"If you want," I answered.

"Tom! Tom! Porter wants to see you," one soldier called. Dad placed Matt on a chair and went to see Colonel Porter.

"Hal, do you like my pictures?" I asked.

"Yeah, they're great," he told me.

"Good, because I fully intend to do more of them, and if the world ever, by some miracle, goes back to normal, I'm gonna pursue a career as an artist."

"Good luck with that, squirt."

"Just because you're taller than me. I blame Mom. She was short too."

_**Falling Skies**_

I sat next to Matt. Dad walked over and sat down too.

"Why are we leaving?" Matt asked.

"We're going someplace better," Dad replied.

"But tonight's the eight. It's my part," he said.

"Oh, sure thing, Your Highness!" Hal called from his motorcycle.

"Hey, you and AJ had birthday parties too. And it was after they came," he told him.

"We'll try to do something when we get settled. We're doing the best we can," Dad said. He got up and walked away. Matt grabbed his box of possessions and went to trudge after him.

"Hey, give him a break, all right?" Hal told Matt. I looked at my big brother.

"Can I ride with you?" I asked.

"If you want," he answered.

"Cool." I smiled. I put my rucksack onto my back and we climbed onto the bike. I wrapped my arms tightly around his chest so I didn't fall off as we drove with the crowd, being careful not to hit anyone.

_**Falling Skies**_

We stopped outside the butcher's Dad was in and I climbed off the bike.

"Dad," Hal said. "Every food store we've passed between here and Acton's been picked clean." Dad began talking to Captain Weaver and I went inside the shop.

"There's not a lot of food, is there?" I asked Anne.

"No, not really. We have over three hundred people to feed and not a lot to give them," she sighed. I heard Captain Weaver yelling but wasn't really paying attention. Anne went to talk to Dad and I ran over to Hal.

"I think we're gonna get some more food," I told him enthusiastically. "And you said last time that the next time you went out to get food, I could come along. You promised." He walked over to Dad and I ran along beside him.

"You need a scout," he told Dad.

"I want you to stay with the group. You stay with Matt and AJ," Dad replied.

"Weaver's more likely to get me killed then you are," he reasoned.

"Hal, you promised I could go with you. You promised," I reminded him. "Dad, please can I go?"

"Fine. Consider this a tester to see if you're ready," Dad sighed.

"You need two scouts!" Karen called.

"Yes I do. Why don't you find Dai and Click and Anthony and one other and see if they'll volunteer?" he asked. He looked at Hal. "You go with her."

"Shall I get a gun?" I said.

"No, I want you to have a knife. Not a gun," he told me.

"Okay. Where shall I get one?" I asked.

"Ask Hal for one when he gets back."

"I'll do that." I ran over to Lourdes and Matt. "Guess what, guys? I get to go with Dad and Hal to look for food."

"I wanna go," Matt whined.

"You can't. You're too little," I said. "Sorry, Mattie."

_**Falling Skies**_

"You'll be there right?" Matt asked Dad.

"Will you give this party thing a rest?" Hal asked.

"Yeah, I'll try to be there," Dad assured my little brother.

"I already know what I'm gonna wish for," he said.

"Oh, yeah, what?" Dad asked.

"I can't tell you," he replied.

"Sure, you can. It's rule six-nineteen, I'm your father, you can tell me anything. Hand me that sleeping bag, would you?"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course," Hal said. "How else do you think you're gonna get what you ask for?"

"Well, I wish everything was back the way it was. Our house, my bike, school, my Ripstik and Ben. And Mom," Matt told us.

"Well, I thought you didn't like school?" Dad frowned.

"Well, I like it now," he said. "Dad, I just wish everything was back the way it was."

"Come here." He lifted Matt up. "So do I. So do I." He placed him on the ground. "It's gonna better." He kissed Matt's forehead gently. Hal grabbed Matt from behind quickly. Matt went to slap his hand and he moved it quickly.

"So slow," Hal teased. Matt hit his other hand instead.

"Faster than you," he replied.

"Dream on. Catch you later."

"Okay, see you later."

"Bye, Mattie. See you when we get back," I said, hugging him gently.

"Okay." he sighed. I grabbed Hal's free hand as Dad explained the routes we were gonna take. He handed Hal some more ammo and they talked for a minute. I climbed onto Hal's motorbike behind him and held on tightly.

_**Falling Skies**_

Hal and I were looking up and down the river for skitters and mechs when suddenly the ground began to shake. He pushed me down and clamped a hand over my mouth. Two mechs passed with a bunch of harnessed kids following. I saw one of them and gasped under Hal's hand.

"Ben," he murmured. We watched as he passed. "Ben." I struggled to move his hand. He let go slowly. I let a few tears slip.

"Ben," I whispered, "I miss you."

_**Falling Skies**_

We drove back to Dad and the others quickly. Hal climbed off the bike hurriedly.

"Which way are they coming?" Dad asked.

"Ben's alive. We saw him!" Hal said.

"What?" He gaped.

"He's harnessed, but he's alive."

"Are you sure it was him?"

"Dad, he's alive."

"It's true. It really was him. I'd know that face anywhere," I insisted.

"And we gotta go get him now. Let's screw this food thing and go get him," Hal ordered.

"Wait, wait, wait," Dad said quickly.

"Dad, it's Ben!" he told him. "We gotta go get him."

"I'm coming," Click announced.

"Me too," Anthony agreed.

"How many skitters? How many mechs?" Dad demanded.

"I don't know, like half a dozen in front of Ben and the other harnessed kids," Hal answered.

"And there might be more coming. You said hundreds in airships," Karen told him.

"Who cares?" he asked loudly. "All right, it's Ben!"

"I'm there, let's go," she said.

"No, it's too many," Dad muttered. "No, no, that's way too many. We gotta stick to the mission. We gotta get the food, we gotta get it back to the group and then I'll get Ben."

"No. I'm going to get him now, with or without you," Hal insisted. He went to climb onto his bike and Dad grabbed him. "Let go already!" He pulled him off and threw him on the floor.

"You think I don't wanna go and get him right now? He's my son! And you're my son! And Matt is back there alone! You think I want him to hear he's lost both his brothers and his father? We do this the right way or we all die! We get the food, we bring it to the group, and then we get Ben," Dad said. "Together. You and me and AJ."

"All right," Hal sighed. "We'll do it your way." Dad climbed off of him and they both stood up. I looked up at them both. I hated it when my family argued and they both knew it. Hal pulled me close and I rested my head on his chest as Dad made plans to get the food later tonight.

_**Falling Skies**_

Hal, Dad, Dai and I crept into the supermarket. I was armed with…a knife. And a flashlight. I went with Hal while everyone else split up to find food. Hal climbed up a ladder to get some food on a high shelf and as he was moving the boxes a skitter jumped out. Hal fell from the ladder and I ran to his side. The skitter jumped down beside me and made a grab at me. I screamed and kicked out at it, but it grabbed my ankle.

"Dad! Hal!" I screamed. Dad came over and started firing at the skitter. It dropped me.

"Hal, AJ, get out of there," Dad bellowed. Hal grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the skitter. The ground began to shake as we heard a mech go after Dad. We ran back and Hal started shooting at it as it got ready to kill Dad. It moved its focus to us instead. We ran to hide and there was a sudden explosion as Dad blew up the mech. We heard firing and went over to find that the skitter had attacked Dad and Dai had shot it. It was still alive, and Hal pushed me behind him.

"I wonder what it's thinking," Jimmy said, as it died.

"Nothing now," Dad replied. "Let's go."

"And this is why I need a gun," I muttered.

_**Falling Skies**_

We drove to the Littleton Bridge, Hal was beeping his horn on his motorcycle. I took one arm away from his to wave at everyone. We climbed off the bikes and everyone surrounded the car to see what we had all brought back. We walked into a huge barn and Dad placed a box of food down on the table in front of Captain Weaver.

"Well, what took you so long?" Captain Weaver asked. "How much did you get?"

"Truck load," Dad answered. "Enough for a few days. Hal, AJ, you stay." He looked at Dai and Anthony. "Why don't you guys wait outside? My son, Ben, is alive."

"What?" Captain Weaver said.

"Hal and AJ saw him," he told him.

"We're not going back. Our next objective is the Acton armoury."

"I know. And after we take the Acton armoury, I gonna be weaponing up and going back to get him."

"Me too," I piped up. Captain Weaver stared at me for a second.

"So am I," Hal said.

"Are you? Well, I'm your commanding officer. And we're not going back. _You're_ not going back," Captain Weaver replied.

"What would you do if you had the chance to get your kids back?" Dad asked. "He's my son."

"You'll never kill enough of them to get him back."

"They die just like us. You just have to get…close." And with that Dad, Hal and I exited the barn. Dad and I joined Matt, Anne and Lourdes, while Hal went off to do something. Anne handed Matt a cupcake.

"So, you gotta make a wish and blow it out because it burns out fast," Anne told him. Lourdes put a small candle into the cupcake. Matt looked up at Dad.

"You know what the wish is. You sure that's okay?" he asked.

"Yeah," Dad replied, running his hand through Matt's hair. Lourdes lit the candle and Matt blew it out quickly.

"Yay. Happy birthday. It's all yours." Anne smiled.

"Matt, I'm sorry, I don't have anything for you," Dad said apologetically.

"Dad!" Hal called, as he walked over with a parcel. "What's the matter with you?"

"What?" Dad frowned.

"You forgot the thing. The thing you got for him," he said, handing it to Matt. "You're going senile. It's from Dad."

"I know what this is," Matt announced. "It's a Ripstik." Dai walked over and handed him a helmet.

"Ride, fool, you only get ten minutes," Hal said. I giggled and he smiled down at me. I beamed with pride as I watched my little brother ride around on the Ripstik. Everyone gathered to watch him. He climbed off in front of me and I got on, then climbed off to let another kid have a go.

"It's time to go!" Dad shouted.

"All right, we're moving out. I wanna make the Great Meadow by dark. We'll set up camp there. There's good cover there!" Captain Weaver yelled. I climbed onto Hal's motorbike.

"Love you, Hal," I said.

"I love you too, AJ," he replied.

"We'll get Ben back, I promise," I assured him. He smiled and ruffled my hair.

"I'm supposed to be telling you that, not the other way around," he told me.

"Yeah, well, guess I'm just growing up faster than I should. We can blame the aliens for that." I shrugged. "Hal?"

"Yeah?"

"Seeing as how, you know, I'm growing up so fast, can I get a tattoo?"

"No."

"Please?"

"Ask Dad."

"Forget it. He'll say no too." I hated being the only girl. My brothers and Dad were always so damn strict. It sucked.

**So what did you think of my first chapter of When the Aliens Come rewritten? I enjoyed writing it, and I love the brotherly/sisterly relationship between Hal and AJ. Hope you'll continue reading this. **

**Beth x**


	2. Chapter 2

Dad ran over to the car we were crouched behind.

"Hey, who's got the ball?" he asked.

"Right here," Hal said. Dad went to throw the ball. "You really think you can get it that far, old man?"

"Five million dollars says you can't hit the front steps," he replied, handing Hal the ball.

"Make that a stick of gum and you got a bet." He grinned. He held the ball in front of the dog. "All right, buddy, you ready?" He threw the ball and we crouched low. Dad handed Hal a stick of gum. Suddenly the ground began to shake and I started trembling. A mech exited the armoury and the dog began barking loudly.

"Nero, come back!" Jimmy called, as he ran to get him. The mech went to kill Jimmy, but Dad pushed him out of the way just in the nick of time. Hal grasped my wrist and pulled me to my feet as we began sprinting back to the Meadow.

_**Falling Skies**_

Hal and I were being approached by a couple who wanted to know if we saw their son when we saw the harnessed kids.

"If we see him, we'll let you know," Hal assured them.

"Who was that?" Dad asked as they walked away.

"Word's out we saw the harnessed kids before we hit the ShopSmart. Wanted to know if we saw their kid," he answered.

"Aw, man, oatmeal again." Matt groaned.

"Eat enough of this, maybe you can get a grand slam," Anthony said.

"Bite me," Matt said.

"Not much of a morning person, are you, Matthew?" he asked. Matt walked off to get some oatmeal and Dad went to talk to Captain Weaver.

"How's your knee?" Hal asked me. I'd fallen over the previous night when we were running from the mech and I'd skinned my knee.

"Painful, and itchy." I shrugged.

"Well, that just means it's healing," he told me.

"I can still run though, so I can come with you when you get Ben." I beamed.

"I don't know, AJ, we don't want you to get caught by the Skitters," he said.

"I won't. I can run fast," I insisted.

"You almost got caught by one in the store. You would've done if Dad hadn't got there when he did."

"We didn't know it was there. We know there'll be Skitters with Ben, so I'll be prepared."

"AJ, I'm not saying you can't come, I'm saying talk to Dad."

"Dad said yesterday that you, me and him are gonna find Ben together," I reminded him.

"All right, well, I've gotta go get some water, okay?" he said. He walked away.

_**Falling Skies**_

We were getting ready to go and scope out the armoury properly. Otherwise we couldn't get Ben back. We crept inside carefully. Suddenly two arrows came out of nowhere and hit Click in the stomach and chest. He fired as he fell to the ground. I let out a small scream, before Dad pulled me to the floor.

"Lights out," he ordered. We could hear two men arguing. "What do you want?"

"I want you and your guns," a man said. We could hear a mech above us. "Listen. You hear that? You start firing, a robot comes in, whereas if you don't do what we say, we'll start picking you off without so much as a whisper. So you have a choice, put down your guns and come with us."

"Why don't you shine a light on yourself? Let me see who I'm talking to," Dad called.

"Why don't I shine a light on these two instead?" I peered round the corner to see that Hal and Karen had been grabbed. "Put down your guns. Now. Or these two get skewered."

"Dad, we have to. He has Hal and Karen," I whispered. We all placed our weapons on the ground and a bunch of guys came over and grabbed us. We all had our hands tied behind our backs and hoods forced over our heads. We were led into some kind of auditorium and had the hoods pulled off our heads. We watched as our captors tended to a man who'd been shot in the leg.

"Any of you happen to be born certified micro surgeons? Fix my brother?" the leader asked. I decided to nickname him Bob as we had no idea what his name was. There was silence from our end. "Then what good are you? So where you from?"

"Cambridge," Dad answered.

"How are things in Cambridge these days?" 'Bob' asked.

"Worse than they are here," he said.

"What are you, a family? Well, obviously not all."

"No. Just came together a couple of months ago."

"You part of some resistance?" he demanded.

"No. Just a group of people trying to survive." That was kind of true.

"Then where'd you get the weaponry?" he said.

"Dead cops. National Guard," Dad lied.

"So what've we got? Papa Smurf, sexy freedom fighter girl, strapping young man, female American leprechaun, black…looks like a gang-banger, and oriental of some sort. We'll take the older girl and the boy. The black?" his men shook their head. He drew out a long sword. "What about Chen?"

"Asians are good at fixing things," one guys said.

"That's true," he remarked. He pointed the sword at Anthony. "But I'm gonna let you drive. Which brings us right back to Leprechaun and Papa Smurf." He crouched in front of Dad. "See now I'm figuring that since you're the only one willing to speak up, that you're their leader. And the leprechaun is just here for the hell of it. We need a leprechaun or another leader, boys?"

"Nah," his friends chorused.

"I didn't think so," he said. He pulled out a gun and pointed it at Dad.

"We can get you more guns!" Hal told him quickly. He paused.

"Where?" he demanded. "I thought you were just a bunch of strangers thrown together by Fate."

"We're with the Resistance. We're part of the Second Massachusetts," he replied.

"The what?" He laughed. "The Second Massachusetts? How… Revolutionary War. What do you got? Knife and drums? Tri-coloured ads?"

"No. We have guns," he said coldly. 'Bob' grabbed him by the jacket and threw him on floor on his stomach. Dad, Dai and Anthony all started yelling, I just gaped.

"What you have, punk, is a fifty cal mounted to the back of a GTO, you have a hundred and eleven fighters and two hundred civilians camped out in the Big Meadow. I've been watching you for two days. That's why we were staking out the armoury. Figured you'd be looking for guns. I'm not gonna kill your old man," he straddled Hal's back and pressed a knife to his throat. Again all three men started yelling, I squeezed my eyes shut tightly. "Now he is your old man, right?" I opened my eyes. The man looked at Dad. "I can't imagine you shouting out like that if he wasn't your kid. You know what," he cut the ropes binding Hal's hands and dragged him to his feet by his hair, "we're not gonna kill anybody. Not yet. You're all way too valuable. So here's what we're gonna do. We're gonna make a deal. You lot for the fifty cal on the back of that car." Dad shook his head. "Maggie! Doll, please take Leprechaun and young Prince Charming here back to the town so that they can bring the terms of our deal to the supreme ally commander of the Second Massachusetts." The woman pulled me to my feet and forced the hoods of our heads before leading us out of the auditorium with a gun pointed at us, no doubt.

_**Falling Skies**_

I could feel one of Hal's hands around my upper arm to keep me from falling over for a fourth time.

"Maggie, is that your name?" he asked suddenly.

"No," replied the woman with a gun on us.

"I could've sworn that I heard him say that your name was Maggie," he continued.

"You heard wrong," she snapped.

"I want you to consider something," he said.

"And I want you to shut up."

"You should join us. Fight 'em back."

"Shut up. Now," she ordered. There was a sudden scuffling noise.

"What the hell is going on?" I demanded. "Hal, did you try to escape?"

"Are you stupid?" she asked Hal.

"Figured it was worth a shot," he replied.

"You do anything like that again and I will use the gun. Get up." There was a groaning as he climbed to his feet. "Turn around. Back. Walk." I felt his hand close round my arm again.

"I feel like I'm about to fall over," I whined.

"Shut up," the woman said.

"Sorry," I muttered in irritation.

_**Falling Skies**_

We stopped suddenly and had the hoods pulled off of us. The woman cut the ropes on my wrists and I sighed with relief as I got circulation back in my hands.

"You've got one hour," she said. We ran back to the camp. We walked into the main house.

"You back already?" Captain Weaver asked.

"We have a problem," Hal said.

"Where's your father?" he demanded.

_**Falling Skies**_

"One's bleeding out, Click shot him in the leg," Hal continued.

"You mean before he died? Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Captain Weaver asked. "Mike, get in here!"

"Do you need me to leave?" Anne asked.

"No, you stay," he answered. He turned to Mike. "Tom and his team have been taken hostage by a bunch of outlaws. Click's dead."

"It wasn't our dad's fault, all right?" Hal spat. "It was a trap!"

"They wanna make a deal. We give them our fifty, they give us Tom and his team," he told Mike.

"How do we make the trade?" Mike asked.

"We don't," he answered.

"What?" Hal and I gaped.

"You don't understand what's happening here, do you?" he asked.

"We understand that if we don't make the trade, they will kill our Dad. They will kill Karen, Dai and Anthony too!" I shouted.

"We start negotiating with them, they will bleed us dry, if they don't just hit us now, which they probably will. Strider and O'Neill, get in here. You go wake up your civilians, they need to be ready to move in ten," he ordered.

"Oh, we're just gonna run?" Hal asked.

"You wanna go fight 'em? Me too. You have any idea where they are? You had a bag on your head," he replied.

"It was an auditorium. Looks like a school."

"Oh, do you happen to know how many schools there are in Acton? Because I don't." He turned to Mike. "All right. Well, I guess this factory you found us will have to do." Hal walked over to Captain Weaver.

"Guy put a gun to our father's head. He's gonna kill him."

"If all I had were fighters, we would go and we would find him. But I have two hundred civilians to worry about, now when we have all of them safe, we will go look for your father."

"I'm going now," Hal declared.

"So am I," I said determinedly. Weaver grabbed us.

"No you're not. Mike, take them next door, watch them until it's time to go," he ordered. "Sound the alarm. We gotta go."

"Please, Mike, you gotta let us go," Hal begged as we were led into a bedroom.

"It's a damn shame," Mike replied.

"I know, but it doesn't have to be."

"I meant it's a damn shame how you were able to overpower me and take my weapon," Mike muttered, handing Hal his gun.

"Should I hit you?" he asked. "Make it look good?"

"No. No, you should not hit me, just - Just block the door," he ordered, stepping inside the wardrobe. He closed the door and we shifted a dresser in the way.

"I'm gonna leave your rifle here."

"No, take it."

"The girl who brought me here, if she saw me with a gun, I think she'd shoot me." We turned and came face to face with Anne. We all jumped.

"I may be able to help you," she said. We snuck out of the house carefully. We raced back to where the woman was. "Where is she?"

"I don't know," Hal panted.

"Where's the fifty?" We were turned and confronted with a gun.

"I'm a doctor," Anne said. "I understand one of your men is badly wounded."

"I take you there, you may never leave."

"It's all we've got."

_**Falling Skies**_

We were led back into the auditorium.

"Oh, this does not look like it's gonna make me very happy," I heard 'Bob' say. "You tell me you have that GTO in the parking lot or I am gonna be _very_ disappointed." The hoods were pulled off of us (again.)

"I'm a doctor," Anne told him. "I may be able to help your brother."

"What kind of doctor?" he demanded.

"The only one you've got," she replied. "Is that him?" He grabbed her and started rifling through her bag. "If I fix him, will you let us leave?"

"If you fix him I'll let you live," he said. He pushed her towards the stage and pointed a gun at her. Hal and I sat down quickly.

_**Falling Skies**_

'Bob's' brother woke up suddenly, yelling. 'Bob' started talking to him quietly.

"You got the tube?" he asked one of his men.

"Yep."

"What about the shells?"

"Yep."

"Where you going?" his brother asked.

"We're gonna rob the Second Massachusetts, you sit this one out," he replied.

"Oh, you think?"

"I'm leaving you, Maggie and Q-Ball, if anybody tries anything, top 'em," he ordered.

"Hey, you know me, huh?" he grinned.

"Yeah, that's why I'm leaving Maggie and Q-Ball, so you don't do it just for laughs."

"Well, that's no fun."

"We're takin' the little kid for insurance, just to make sure they don't gun us down," he said, grabbing my arm. My eyes widened in shock, and I looked at my family. Karen, Dai and Anthony had been brought in now. Dad and Hal looked furious and I was scared shitless.

_**Falling Skies**_

As the flare was fired into the air, screaming from the civilians broke out in the Meadow. 'Bob' had his arm round my neck and in his hands he was holding a flare and a white flag.

"You in charge?" he asked Captain Weaver.

"I am. You the one who took my fighters?" asked Captain Weaver.

"I did. What gave it away? The fact I have one here? You better tell your people to drop their weapons and run."

"Like hell."

"If I give the signal, my guys will open up on your civilians, and I will put a bullet in the Leprechaun's brain," he said. Captain Weaver walked up to him.

"You give any signal whatsoever, it'll be the last thing that you do," he told him.

"Listen, Chief, a control ship is gonna pick up on those flares and when they do, and they're not gonna fire nukes, but they will hit hard and anyone left in this meadow will be killed. I'm not asking for your rifles, I have enough of them, all I'm asking for is the food you have right now, the fifty cal and that sweet little GTO. In exchange, I give you your friends back," he said.

"Leave the food," Captain Weaver ordered the other fighters. "I will get ya. Now hand over the girl."

"Oh, not her. She's the only thing stopping you from shooting me the minute I take the stuff," he sneered.

"Wait, what?" I gaped.

"Don't worry, kid, I'll drop you off when we get a little way away from here." He looked at Captain Weaver. "Get going." We watched as they began walking away.

_**Falling Skies**_

The men finished loading food into the car.

"Let's go, let's go! Come on! Let's go, ondules! Just leave it, let's go!" 'Bob' shouted. Suddenly we were fired at.

"Holy shit! Do you mind?" I yelled. I was pulled behind a car. "Guys, don't shoot me!"

"Take the fifty now!" he ordered. One of his men climbed into the car and began firing with the fifty cal. He fell back down after a minute.

"Cease fire! Cease fire! Cease fire!" I heard Dad bellow. "Can you hear me, Pope?"

"My ears are still ringing, but yeah!" 'Bob' shouted back. So Pope was his name. I made a mental note to call him that. "Those my own guns you're firing at me?"

"They are!" he yelled.

"You better run, Professor!"

"Ships are gonna come for the flares! You're in the middle of the flares!"

"So am I!" I snapped. "You're lucky you didn't fricking well shoot me!"

"What are my options?" Pope demanded.

"Join or die!" Dad answered.

"Just like the Revolution, huh?"

"Just like!"

"Well, tell you what, why don't we sit tight? See how the air strikes go?"

"What? What? Are you crazy? We'll die!" I was so busy screaming at Pope I didn't hear what Dad said.

"I drive, you follow close. If they can't see you, they can't shoot," Pope muttered. He climbed into the car and pulled me in. An airship swooped down and he drove us out of the line of fire. Unfortunately his men weren't so lucky. He began to climb out of the car to be confronted by Captain Weaver holding a semi-automatic AK47. "Well, I guess you caught me after all."

"Get out," Captain Weaver ordered.

"Oh, thank God. I'm saved," I said. "Now help me out of the car. I can't do it with my hands tied behind my back." Pope was forced to reach in and get me out.

"One wrong move, I'll take your head off," Captain Weaver informed him. He drew out a knife with his free hand and quickly sliced the ropes on my wrists without taking his eyes off Pope.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go find Dad and Hal and assure them that I'm okay," I told them both, before running off. I spotted my family. "Dad! Hal!" Hal threw his arms around me tightly and almost broke my ribs in the process.

"Are you okay?" he demanded.

"I'm alive. I'm not injured, unless you consider the rope burns on my wrists. Are you guys alright?" I replied.

"Yeah, we're fine, AJ," he assured me.

"Thank God," I breathed.

_**Falling Skies**_

We were at the John F. Kennedy High School, and Captain Weaver had told Dad he could go look for Ben, but Dad told me to stay behind, because there was no guarantee he was actually where they were going. I've proved to Dad that I'm good in dangerous situations, even if I did freak out a little when Pope suggested waiting for the airships. So, I've been told that if Ben is at the hospital, Dad and Hal re gonna scope is out the first time, and then when they go to get him, I get to go too. And I can't wait to see my brother again. We'll be a real family, well, we would be, if Mom was alive. But I'm getting better slowly. And I'm gonna kill as many aliens as I can, no matter what.

**And there you have it, chapter 2. I only made a few minor changes, but oh well, they're changes all the same. **

**Beth xxx**


	3. Chapter 3

I was waiting outside for Dad and Hal and the others to come back. I heard footsteps approaching and ran to Hal.

"Was he there?" I asked.

"Yeah, he was there," he replied.

"And we're gonna go back to get him soon?" I said.

"That's right," he answered.

"Awesome." I beamed.

"You been waiting this whole time?" he asked

"Of course. Well, almost the whole time. I was inside for ten minutes after you left, but then I got super impatient and had to wait outside." I shrugged. As we walked into the school, Anne came over and started talking to Dad. Suddenly a crowd of people surrounded him asking if he'd seen their kids.

"Hey, hey, hey, come on, break it up, give 'em some space," Mike ordered.

"We've got the right to ask," one woman said.

"No one's saying you don't, but we all have missing kids, including Tom here," he told her.

"And you," Dad added.

"That's right, my boy Rick." He nodded.

"Look, everybody, I know what you're going through, we all just wanna get our kids back. And I promise you, we're gonna do everything possible to make sure that happens," he assured the crowd.

"Okay, guys, look, there's a school announcement board here. Why don't you take your pictures and post your missing kids up here?" Anne suggested.

"Yeah, great idea."

"Yeah, and write their name, hair colour, weight, height," Anthony said.

"Last time you saw them."

"Yeah, anything you can think of that'll help us identify them," Dai agreed.

"I promise that all the squads will check this board before each and every mission, okay?" Dad asked. The civilians began swarming the board like bees to honey.

"Hal, I have a question," I murmured.

"What's that, squirt?" he asked.

"Is Weaver gonna kill Pope?" I demanded. He laughed loudly. "It's not funny. I'm serious. I wanna know."

"I doubt it," he chuckled, shaking his head. "Why?"

"Because Pope's a douchebag. He nearly killed me, and he killed Click," I replied.

"But if Weaver killed him, he'd be as bad as Pope, so I don't think he'll kill him," he told me.

"Okay," I said. I fell silent. He grasped my bony shoulders and couched down so he was eye-level with me.

"AJ, what's wrong?" he asked softly.

"I miss Ben," I replied, a tear rolling down my cheek. He pulled me close and I wrapped my arms tightly around him.

"I know, squirt, me too," he said. I buried my face in the crook of his neck. I pulled away after a few moments.

"You're a good brother," I informed him.

"And you're a _great_ sister." He grinned.

"Thanks, Hal," I said.

"No problem, squirt."

_**Falling Skies**_

We went to look at the notice board before we headed out to get Ben. I memorised the faces and then we took off.

_**Falling Skies**_

We hid, watching silently. We hid behind the door frame as a Mech passed. Hal and Karen were both clutching their guns tightly. I gripped my knife like it was a lifeline. We heard the explosion.

"They must have Ben!" Karen said.

"Let's go!" Hal ordered. I followed them, sprinting.

"There's the truck!" she announced. We saw a Mech on the roof, saw it fire. Hal began shooting it at after it caused another explosion. Karen followed his lead and we started running, the Mech following us on the rooftop. It jumped and landed in front of us. I stumbled and fell backwards. My knife was plunged into my leg. I screamed in pain as Hal and Karen stared in horror at the mighty metal beast.

_**Falling Skies**_

My eyelids fluttered open. I felt myself being dragged, but was too weak to fight. I saw Hal growing smaller, and smaller.

"Hal," I croaked. "Hal!" Then … darkness.

_**Falling Skies**_

I was on some sort of table. I saw a Skitter. I screamed loudly as I saw it grasp a harness with a three-fingered, green hand.

"No," I screamed as it came closer. "No! You can't put that thing on me! Get away!" I struggled, but felt human hands holding me down. I screamed and sobbed as I felt the harness attach itself to my back painfully. Then my mind went black and I lost all thoughts.

**Well, there you have it. Chapter 3 … again. Wait for chapter four. I'll be uploading it pretty soon. **

**Beth xxx**


	4. Chapter 4

**This is where AJ wakes up after being rescued by Hal and Tom and the others, because she was in Ben's group so when they rescued him, they rescued her. This is from where she wakes up after having the harness removed to the end of episode 7.**

I woke slowly. I lifted up my head suddenly, looking around fearfully. The green Skitters had been replaced by Dad, Hal, Matt and Ben.

"Guys?" I breathed. Hal turned and stared for a second.

"Hey, squirt," he murmured.

"Hal." I smiled, tears of joy and relief sliding down my cheeks. Then I realised I was laying stomach down on a bed in the library at the school, with only a thin white sheet covering my naked form. I felt self-conscious.

"You okay?" Hal asked.

"What did I miss?" I said.

"Pope ran, Karen was taken by the Skitters and we rescued you and Ben," he replied.

"So, I'm not dreaming?" I asked. "I won't wake up tomorrow and be back in the hospital?"

"No, you're not dreaming. Now go to sleep, AJ," Hal ordered.

"I can't sleep on my tummy. Only on my back," I whined.

"Well, you're not allowed to sleep on your back," he told me. Dad looked at me.

"Daddy," I sobbed. He placed a hand on my cheek and thumbed away the tears.

"Hey, don't cry, AJ," Dad begged.

"I missed you and Hal and Matt," I cried.

"You're here now. And you're safe. Sleep, baby girl," he whispered. His soothing words were like a lullaby, sending me to sleep.

_**Falling Skies**_

I curled up on the chair, watching Ben do press-ups.

"Ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred," Matt chanted. "One-hundred-and-one, one-hundred-and-two." Ben stood up. "You just did one-hundred-and-two push-ups."

"I did?" Ben asked.

"Guys, enough!" Hal groaned. "I got night sentry duty." He was lying on a bed.

"Sorry, Hal," I murmured.

"Pretty gross, huh?" Ben asked, referring to the spikes on his neck.

"Ssh," Hal snapped.

"Some of the other kids you were with said that their spikes were going away, even AJ's," Matt said.

"I know. Mine aren't. Maybe it's because AJ and the others weren't there as long as me and Rick," Ben replied.

"Do they still hurt?"

"At first, not so much now." He shrugged. "Sometimes I forget they're even there and then I move the wrong way or bang into something."

"Can I touch one?" Matt demanded.

"…Sure…" he frowned. Matt reached out a hand and poked one. Ben gasped in pain and bent over, panting. I sat bolt upright.

"Are you okay?" Matt asked. My older brother started sniggering. "You jerk! That wasn't funny!"

"Sorry, sorry." Ben laughed. "I couldn't help myself." He started tickling Matt and they fell onto the sofa. I saw Hal look up in annoyance and gave him a small smile, which he returned. I stood up and walked over to the mirror, lifting up my shirt and staring at the spikes poking out of my skin in disgust and wonder. The skin had healed, leaving behind the impression I'd had the spikes all my life, as there was no scarring. They were beginning to disappear, growing back into my skin. I wanted them gone. I tuned out Matt and Ben and just looked at the spikes. I jumped as I felt a cold hand touch my shoulder.

"AJ?" Ben said softly, frowning.

"Yeah?" I asked, looking up.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Just looking at the spikes. They're going away," I said, relief clear in my voice. "It feels weird, having them there."

"Weird how?"

"Like, I don't know, kinda like if I do something wrong, like move wrong, they'll hurt me. I can't sleep on my back anymore. I have to sleep on my side."

"Oh, okay," he said.

"Anyway, it doesn't matter. They'll be gone soon." I sighed happily, tugging my shirt back down.

_**Falling Skies**_

We sat in the gym. I was leaning against Hal, my head on his shoulder with his arm round me. I heard shouting and then saw Dad moving towards Clayton arguing with civilian.

"Hey, hey, hey. What's going on?" he demanded.

"I know that a lot of you have lost your children. Don't think that my heart doesn't break for you. But please imagine that your child is still with you, would you let anyone take them away from you?" the civilian asked loudly.

"That hasn't been decided yet. Everybody here wants the same thing: Our kids to be safe," Dad said.

"They'll never be safe. Safe is over! We could die any day and if that day comes, I'm gonna be by my daughter's side," the man declared.

"I don't want anybody to die. This is about what it takes to survive."

"Yeah? Well, I swear to God, anybody tries to take my little girl away from me…"H voice trailed off as he reached to grab his gun. Dad's hand closed round his wrist.

"Hey, don't you forget who the enemy is," he snapped. "Everyone here has had to make hard choices just to make it this far. And we're gonna make more. But if we fall apart now, and we start turning on each other, then it doesn't matter when the attack comes because we've already lost."

"Who's gonna decide what we do if they attack?" the man asked. "Weaver?"

"No, I will." There was a loud noise from outside. Dad looked up. "That's Mech fire." I looked at Hal and Ben, fear pumping through my veins. There was so much shouting I lost track of things until I felt Hal pull me, Ben and Matt towards him.

"Hal, don't go out there," I begged.

"I won't," he assured me.

_**Falling Skies**_

I stood in line with Ben, getting food. He was flirting with a girl handing it out. A man grabbed him suddenly.

"Why don't you take one and get out?" he snapped at us.

"What's your problem?" Ben asked. I looked up in confusion.

"I'm not standing in line with these razorbacks!" the man shouted. "Ones like them are the reason the Skitters are coming!"

"But, we didn't -" I was cut off as Hal and Margaret ran over and Hal pulled the guy away.

"You got a problem?" Han growled.

"No problem," the man replied. "Just glad we're not bringing these harnessed kids back to the Second Mass."

"Oh, nobody's stopped anything. As soon as we get the drugs Doctor Glass needs we're gonna rescue as many of them as we can."

"You're just inviting the Skitter attack." Hal put his face inches from the man's.

"See, the Skitters should know by now, anybody who messes with our families gets their asses kicked. By me."

"All right. All right." The man turned and walked off. I looked at my eldest brother proudly.

"You rule, Hal," I announced. That was when I realised Ben had left the hall.

_**Falling Skies**_

"Everybody!" Dad shouted. I turned. "I've decided to send Matt, Ben and AJ along with Lieutenant Clayton. It'll put our kids a few hours ahead of whatever else is coming and I think that's a good thing. The Third Massachusetts will be here tomorrow and if everything goes as planned, we'll be reunited with our kids by tomorrow night." A civilian stepped forward.

"We just got hit by a Skitter." He looked at Clayton. "If they're still out there, how are you gonna get through?"

"We're a small group travelling on foot. We'll be ahead of the main Skitter force and way under their radar," Clayton answered.

"But if you're not -"

"And they're gonna have a security detachment with them," Dad added. "Ryan, Fuller!"

"I'd like Mike to come too if that's all right," Clayton said. "We go back."

"Okay," Dad nodded. "We know the Skitters aren't after the youngest ones. The rest will go because our kids are our future and their safety has got to come first. So pack 'em up. They leave in an hour." The crowd departed and I ran to Dad, grabbing his arm urgently.

"I don't wanna go. Let me fight. I can do it," I said.

"I know, AJ, but you have to go. I'll see you again in no time at all," he assured me.

"Why do I gave to go?" I asked.

"I can't risk them taking you again."

_**Falling Skies**_

I was standing outside with Ben, he was looking at an old photograph. Hal walked over.

"That Six Flags?" he asked. "Where'd you get that?"

"Had it on me when the Skitters took me. They didn't take it. Forgot I even had it," Ben answered. "Remember that day?"

"I remember you threw up on me. Then Matt threw up on me. Then AJ did too. It was one of the most memorable days of my life," he said.

"At least Dad didn't throw up on you," he pointed out. We all chuckled.

"I don't know, he was looking a little green.," Hal laughed.

"You and AJ look like her," Ben said. He was talking about Mom. Hal took the photo.

"That's what everybody always said," he agreed.

"Take it."

"Why?"

"Hold on to it for me. Until you come back for us." With that he walked away. I slung my satchel over one shoulder.

"Bye, Hal," I said, giving him a one armed hug. He kissed the top of my head and ruffled my hair. I batted his hand away. "Don't touch the hair, Hal." He walked off and I stood there for a moment. I pulled out the picture of my tenth birthday that I had in my bag. All of us, Mom included, standing around the table while I blew out my birthday candles. My hair nearly caught fire that day. I slid it back into my bag, went over to Ben and he made sure Matt and I had everything we needed. Hal appeared and handed Ben's photo to him.

"Here," he said.

"I told you to hold onto it," Ben reminded him.

"I decided to come with you. Might as well hang onto it yourself, dumbass," he said.

"You're coming?" he asked.

"Yeah," Dad came over. Hal looked at him. "I'll get him there and stay with them until you can catch up."

"I don't wanna go, Dad," Matt said.

"I know you don't, but it's just gonna be for a few days, maybe less," Dad told him, hugging him. "It's gonna get better."

"It's gonna get better?" Ben repeated. "That's the best advice a college professor can pull up?"

"That's the best I've got right now," he shrugged. "Be safe, I love you." He hugged Ben and then turned to me. "AJ, be careful, all right? Keep your brothers in line. They need a mature female around to keep them from fighting."

"I'll do my best, Dad," I chirped, wrapping my arms around him.

"All right, follow me!" Clayton ordered. As we began to follow him, Matt ran to say one last goodbye to Dad. Hal held a gun in one hand and draped his free arm round my shoulders.

_**Falling Skies**_

After a while, I managed to convince Ben to carry my bag, by handing him a piece of gum. It made life a lot easier on me, believe me. And honestly, it didn't seem to bother him. We came to some woods and Clayton decided we had to go through there instead. I waited for a second for Hal.

"You think Dad's okay?" I asked softly.

"I'm sure he's fine," he answered.

_**Falling Skies**_

The ball was kicked to me and I managed to score a goal. I gaped in amazement. I'd never played soccer in my life, but I scored a goal. The other team got the ball and managed to kick it past Lourdes.

"Come on, guys, we can take 'em," Hal said.

"You're not even trying!" Matt insisted.

"I wasn't trying?" he repeated. "You just showed up." I picked up my little brother and began tickling him mercilessly.

"At least I scored one." I laughed. He laughed loudly and told me to put him down. I placed him on the ground. After a bit of talking we all started up again.

_**Falling Skies**_

I was sitting in an armchair, reading an old Kathy Reich's book happily. I'd managed to get the whole set after the attack and Dad let me read them because there was no sex. I was reading _Deadly Decisions_ again. Hal came in and sat down.

"Hey, squirt," he greeted.

"Hey," I replied nonchalantly.

"You reading again?" he asked.

"Brainiac like me has to read." I shrugged.

"What is it?"

"A murder book," I answered, not looking up.

"Dinner's ready, you coming?" he asked. I put the book down immediately.

"You even have to ask?" I followed him into the dining room and sat down. We all began eating and talking. Clayton and Tessa's dad came in.

"Thought I heard some commotion out there," Hal said to Clayton. "Everything okay?"

"Sentry thought he saw a coyote," Clayton answered.

"You definitely have a different scale of problems out here," Mike declared.

"You get used to it after a while. What's the matter, Rick, not hungry?" he asked. Silence was his answer. "Tell you what, when your dad and I served together, he could not stop talking about you."

"Don't worry, mostly good stuff," Mike said.

"And what good stuff could that be?" Rick demanded. "How I was sick all the time? How I could barely catch my breath?" He looked at me and Ben. "How can you eat their food?"

"Excuse me?" Ben said. We stared for a moment before standing up and leaving the room. I walked downstairs and outside, before slamming my hand into the wall in frustration. How could Rick say that? Did he honestly think that we wanted to be harnessed? I knew that was what he meant. How could we eat food made by people who'd never been harnessed, instead of eating the Skitters' food? Hal joined me suddenly.

"You okay, AJ?" he asked.

"Fine," I lied.

"Ali Jessica Mason, don't lie to me," he said.

"Well, I already feel like a freak without Rick saying stuff like that and now I feel even weirder," I said.

"You're not a freak," he assured me.

"I'm not?" I asked.

"No. Now why don't you head inside?" he said.

"Okay, Hal," I replied, before walking in. I passed Tessa on my way upstairs.

_**Falling Skies**_

"AJ, wake up," Hal urged. I opened my eyes slowly.

"What's happening? Is Dad here?" I asked sleepily.

"Clayton made a deal with the Skitters, we have to go," he said. I sat up and threw up my jacket and boots, then slid my knife into my sleeve. We all trailed downstairs. Tessa was standing there.

"Hal? What are you doing?" she demanded.

"Clayton made a deal with the Skitters, tell me you didn't know about this," he replied.

"I was gonna talk to them about you, fix it so you could stay," she murmured. He stared at her in disgust and horror, before ushering us all downstairs. "They're never gonna let you leave! Dad! Dad, they're leaving! Dad!" Hal went to grab her.

"No time," Mike hissed. Hal picked me up and ran downstairs. We all headed for the woods. He put me down and handed Matt to me. I started running again quickly. There was gunfire. Ben reached out a hand which I grasped tightly and he pulled me along.

"AJ, put me down, I can run," Matt said. I put him down and he grasped Ben's other hand so our brother was pulling both of us along. We reached a clearing in the woods and one loud shot rang out. Then silence. I knew on instinct that someone was dead. And I guessed who. I stopped and dropped Ben's hand, looking at Hal fearfully.

"Come, AJ," Hal ordered. He started dragging me away, telling Rick to keep going.

_**Falling Skies**_

"Haven't heard anything in a while. Maybe we lost 'em," Hal said.

"It's still a long way back to the school," Lourdes pointed out. "What do you think?"

"I think they're about to fall over," he answered. "Better that it happens inside than out. Let's go this way." We followed him to a house.

_**Falling Skies**_

I'd slept for thirty minutes and I was now raiding the fridge for food. It had all gone bad. Ben had run off to find the school and thus, find help. Matt and Jimmy were playing Battleships. Rick was staring out the window.

"Hey, what are you looking at?" Jimmy demanded.

"I'm waiting," Rick replied.

"You're worried about Ben," Lourdes said to Hal.

"I'm worried about all of them. This must be what my dad goes through. Except he's a lot better at dealing with it than I am." Hal shrugged.

"You sunk my battleship!" Matt yelped.

"Guys, hey, pack that up, we gotta hit the road soon," he ordered.

"Kinda like the old days. Eating in the dining room, board games," Lourdes said.

"Yeah, never had the patience for them," he told her. "Lacrosse, football, that was my thing."

"You think we'll have this again?"

"Someday."

"You really think we can beat them?"

"I think we're gonna kick their alien ass," he replied. I pulled out a glass and was just about to fill it up with tap water when suddenly from outside came the words, "Good morning!" I dropped the glass and it smashed. Clayton found us.

"They found us," Jimmy stated.

"Keep quiet," Hal ordered.

"Come on out, we're taking you home!" Clayton bellowed.

"Stay down," he hissed, before creeping into the front room. I got down on my hands and knees and crawled after him. I ducked below the window, while he sat beside it, just out of Clayton's view.

"Don't make me come in there for you, Hal and AJ, nobody wants to see anybody else get hurt," he called. Hal crossed to the door and opened it slightly.

"We know about your deal. You need us alive!" he shouted.

"Yeah, well, there's a term in war: Acceptable losses. If one of your friends gets hurt or killed I can live with that, can you!"

"Go to Hell!" He fired suddenly and I yelped.

"Hal, what are you doing?" I whispered urgently.

"What are we gonna do now?" Lourdes demanded.

"I'm gonna try and hold them off. You take 'em out the back," he answered. As we watched through the window, we heard them saying about taking out Hal. I drew my knife from my sleeve and threw it, narrowly missing Clayton's head as the knife got stuck in a tree trunk. Suddenly someone took out one of Clayton's men from behind. My jaw dropped at the voice that said, "Keep your damn heads down, kids!"

"Pope!" I yelled. "You couldn't have come ten minutes earlier!"

"Sorry I'm late," he bellowed back. There were more shots. "Hey, Clayton, how's that Skitter deal workin' now, huh!" There was more yelling and then sudden silence. Then another voice joined.

"Hold your fire! Pope's dead! Clayton, it's Tom Mason, I'm coming out!" the voice called.

"It's Dad!" Matt stated, moving forward. Lourdes grabbed him and pulled him back.

"We're not taking any prisoners today, Mason!" Clayton said.

"You might wanna thing about that," Dad told him.

"Oh, yeah?"

"Everything you told us is a lie. I know you haven't talked to Porter. Because I have and he's on his way."

"So, you're gonna do what? Offer yourself up as a hostage, is that it? Why?"

"I don't want them to get hurt."

"Grab his weapon," Clayton ordered.

"What makes you think he's telling the truth?" Tessa's dad asked.

"Tom's smart enough to know that if I even suspect that he's lying I'm gonna take it out on his kids," he answered. "All right, Tom, you call 'em out."

"Hal, Matt, Ali, come on out, it's all over. Everybody, come on out," Dad called. Hal sighed, but got up slowly and motioned for everyone to follow him outside. When we opened the door he was stripped of his weapons. Matt ran to Dad and threw his arms round him. Clayton grabbed me suddenly and pulled me in front of him, pressing the barrel of his gun to my head.

"AJ!" Hal said quickly. He moved to grab me but found himself with a gun aimed at his face.

"Do exactly what we say or the girl gets her brains blown out," Clayton snapped.

"Why am I always taken hostage?" I asked. "It's because I'm just a 'weak, pathetic little girl', right?"

"Shut up."

"I have the right of free speech."

"I have a license to kill."

"Whatever, James Bond."

_**Falling Skies**_

We arrived back at the farm. I had a sinking feeling in my gut.

"All right, let's get all the kids except this one in the stable, now," Clayton ordered. Matt was dragged away from Hal by one of Clayton's men and then Lourdes took him. As they walked to the stable, he pulled back.

"No, I'm not going! Dad!" he screamed. Dad tried to take a step forward and a guy confronted him with a gun. The man was shot suddenly and Weaver emerged from the farmhouse.

"Drop 'em!" he ordered. "Drop 'em!" He shot another guy. "Okay, who's next! Who's next!" Everyone who wasn't on our side put down their guns. Clayton pushed me away roughly and I fell to the floor and heard my wrist snap. I cried out in pain and clutched it. Hal helped me up and pressed me to him.

"What about me, Dan?" Clayton asked. "You gonna shoot me too?"

"Only if I have to," Weaver replied.

"Tom, what's the next step in this plan of yours?" he demanded. He pulled out a gun and pointed it at Hal and I. "'Cause I was thinking maybe -" A shot rang out and he dropped like a stone.

"You okay?" Dad asked.

"Yeah, we're okay," Hal answered. "Did you know they were waiting for us?"

"I hoped," he said. He looked at Weaver. "I wasn't sure if you would come."

"I almost didn't," Weaver told him.

"Dad!" Ben ran out of the farmhouse.

"Told you to send the cavalry, not come with them." He smiled. They hugged and I got pulled into the embrace. "What do you wanna do with them?"

"Take their weapons, but I don't see bringing them back to the Second Mass. You people, you can go or you can stay, I don't really give a damn, but if I find that you've been dealing with the Skitters again I'll kill every last one of you," Weaver told Clayton's people.

_**Falling Skies**_

Anne was putting my arm in a sling. I'd fractured my wrist. Sarah, a civilian, had given birth at last to a little girl named Charlotte.

"Why is it I always get the seat next to the crying baby?" Pope snapped.

"Show's over, creep," Margaret sneered, closing the curtain so he couldn't see Sarah. Dad walked in just then.

"That wasn't for you," Anne said to him. He looked at Sarah.

"Congratulations on a successful delivery," he said.

"Weaver did most of the work," she told him. "After that it was a normal birth in a high school chem. lab. Sarah did great. Baby Charlotte is beautiful. Ten fingers, ten toes."

"I always loved that sound." He smiled, referring to the cooing noise Charlotte was now making.

"I'm fine, by the way," Pope piped up. Anne walked off and Dad looked at Pope.

"You could've kept running," he reminded him.

"Probably should have. Probably still will, given half the chance."

"Not until you've done the kitchen shorthand."

"I guess I'm back where I started."

"Consider yourself lucky," and with that, Dad left. I looked at Pope.

"Thanks," I said. "For stepping in."

"I don't know why I did." He sighed. "By the way, that was a good throw. If you'd been a little to the left, you would've killed Clayton."

"Yeah. Thanks for the advice." I smirked.

"No problem."

"Well, hey, at least we'll have good food again."

"Yippee for you."

**Well, there it is. Chapter 4. Hope you enjoyed it. **

**Beth xxx**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer~ Much to my dismay I don't own Falling Skies. Steven Spielberg and TNT do. **

"AJ, AJ, wake up." Hal's voice was distant. He shook me suddenly and I tumbled out of bed, hitting my fractured wrist when I fell. I hissed in pain.

"Son of a bitch," I muttered, through gritted teeth.

"Ali Jessica Mason, don't swear," he scolded. I stood up carefully.

"I hit my wrist, Hal," I whined.

"So? Don't swear. You're only fourteen." He shrugged. I got mad and punched his arm hard.

"Son of a bitch," he wheezed.

"Hal Mason, don't swear," I snapped. He straightened up slowly, before grabbing me and tossing me on my bed, tickling me mercilessly. "Hal, stop!" I kicked my legs wildly and laughed loudly. "Hal, I mean it! I'll pee on you!" He stopped immediately and sat back, looking at me.

"Come on, AJ, time for lunch," he said.

"It's lunchtime already?" I gaped. "Wow, those painkillers Anne gave me really put me to sleep."

"Painkillers?" He frowned.

"For my wrist," I answered.

"Sorry. Is your wrist okay? You didn't hurt it too badly?" he demanded.

"No, Hal, I didn't. The pain is gone now," I told him. So I told a little lie. I didn't want him to worry. I wasn't gonna die from it or anything. We got up and walked to the lunch hall.

_**Falling Skies**_

I stared as Pope entered the room.

"Oh, no, it's you," I groaned.

"I'm not that bad, kid," he snapped.

"Wanna bet, _John_?" I smirked. He glared at me and I put my arm round Matt's shoulders. My brother looked at my neck and gently lifted my hair.

"AJ, your spikes look better," he said. I reached up and touched them. It was true. I took a deep breath.

"They feel better too. They don't hurt anymore," I told him.

"What's with the Patrola?" Pope asked, looking at the radio. **(A/N: I think he said that.) **

"It's a radio transmitter," Scott said. "Scouts found it at a community college, and these types last forever."

"Great, maybe you can get NPR on that thing and we can bore the aliens to death," he scoffed.

"It's not supposed to kill them," Matt told him.

"Well, I'm officially not interested but somebody's got a death wish because these bomb making plans are a joke," Pope informed us.

"Hey, hey, hey," Scott protested.

"These ratios are all wrong. This is a bunch of crap."

"You may have fooled the Colonel but I am not buying this act. Guys like you don't stick their neck out for nothing."

"See, that's where you're wrong, Scottie-Boy, this is all about me. See there is nothing I like more than wasting Skitters, expect not blowing my head off while doing it!"

"I never claimed to be a demolition expert."

"Not much on housekeeping either," he remarked. "One hell of a Mech collection you've got here." Matt and I hopped off the desk to get a closer look.

"Well, they've been cutting a hell of a swat. Our bullets just bounce off and theirs could tear through an engine block. So I thought I would just crack this one open and…" Scott tried opening it and a spray of bullets came out and hit the wall. Instinctively I pushed Matt back. "It's okay. Hey, Matt. Matt, it's okay."

"I-I gotta go," my little brother said, before leaving the room. I walked to the hole in the wall and touched it carefully with the pad of my index finger. A bit more of the wall fell off. I grinned sheepishly.

"My bad," I said. I walked out of the room and crashed into Dad. "Ow!"

"Hey, AJ. I'm gonna need you to stay behind and look after Matt, okay?" he said.

"Okay," I sighed.

"AJ, we're scouting the tower. The last thing I want is for you to get caught by the Skitters again," he told me gently.

"I know, Dad," I replied.

"And stay away from Pope as much as possible."

"You got it."

"I love you, sweetie," he said. I hugged him tightly.

"I love you too," I mumbled into his jacket. We let go of each other and he walked away.

_**Falling Skies**_

Matt and I walked into the science classroom carefully. Pope turned when he heard our footsteps.

"What do you want?" he asked brusquely.

"I-I left my backpack," Matt stammered. Pope waved his arm in the direction of the bag. "How do you know so much about bombs anyway? Did you go to school?"

"Yep, did the whole four year programme at a correctional. You know, your old man finds out you two have been hanging with me, you're liable to discover the true meaning of the word corporal punishment after he shoots me," he told us.

"I know, he told us to stay away," Matt said. He walked to the Mech collection where his backpack was carefully.

"Don't worry, kid." He pulled the sheet off the parts. "Old Sparky here is as dead as dead gets."

"It still scares me."

"Yeah, why?"

"Because they kill people."

"Kid, a lot of things kill people."

"Not like this," Matt said. "I still have nightmares about them. Taking away Ben and AJ, killing Mom. I wanna be brave. Like Dad and Hal and AJ and you." It was as if they'd both forgotten I was there. "But I'm scared all the time."

"It ain't the Boogeyman, kid, it's just a pile of rock and junk. Look, you've got gears, bearings and servos. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a made in Japan sticker in there." He picked up a Mech bullet. "This, this is interesting."

"What is it?"

"It's a Mech bullet." He tossed it to my brother. I watched with my arms folded across my chest.

"It looks like ours."

"It is. Forty-four calibre. I'm betting these scaly maggots, they raid all the military ammo dumps worldwide for the shells then they convert 'em for the robo-cops. Turns out our alien friends are big on recycling. But the slug, that's the interesting part, it's made out of Mech metal. It's kind of like the depleted uranium the army uses for tank busters."

"I wish we could us these against them," Matt murmured. Pope grabbed the bullet suddenly and smiled.

"Out of the mouths of babes," he said.

"Oh, Lord, help us. Pope's having an idea." I groaned. "Time for the locust swarms and frogs raining from the sky."

_**Falling Skies**_

I ran towards Hal as I saw him approach.

"Hal!" I yelled.

"AJ!" he shouted. He started running too. When we reached each other he held me tightly to him.

"Are you okay?" I demanded.

"There was a Mech," he said. His eyes filled with tears.

"What else happened?" I asked softly.

"I saw Karen. AJ, she was harnessed. But she was so … beautiful." He sighed. He put me down, walked slowly over to the wall and punched it hard. I yelped and ran over, cradling his hand gently. He'd split the skin covering his knuckles open so blood pooled.

"Don't do that," I scolded. I softened at his expression. "We'll find her, Hal. I promise. We will."

"You don't know that," he murmured.

"Okay, you're right, I don't," I replied. "But, I can always hope, right?" Then we heard Pope yelling. "Oh, balls." We walked outside together to look.

"Come on, come on, gather round, I'm only gonna do this once!" he was bellowing. "So, the score is aliens, one, humans, zero! Hell, humans aren't even on the board!"

"What the hell is he doing?" Hal hissed.

"Oh, he had an idea," I answered.

"And the sky hasn't completely fallen down? It's a miracle," he joked. I snickered.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you!" Pope yelled. "Oh, the whole gang's here! Good! I do not wanna have to do this twice!"

"You're supposed to be making bombs, _Pope_," Weaver reminded him, walking over with Dad.

"You ever heard of multi-tasking? It's all under control," he replied dismissively.

"It better be. 'Cause I'm itching for a reason to put you back behind bars."

"Take it easy, will ya? I've been studying hard," he yelled. I watched Matt sprint over to Dad and inwardly groaned. He was bound to blab that we'd helped Pope, and Dad would probably be mad that we disobeyed him. Sure enough, I watched his face fall after Matt said something. I shook my head lightly and looked up at Pope. "Why are we losing the war? Why's that? Because the bad guys have us outgunned! It takes an entire magazine just to put a dent in one of their tin soldiers. May I?" he asked, gesturing to a fighter's gun. Weaver nodded.

"Watch him," he ordered as Pope took the gun. Pretty much every weapon was then pointed at him. He fired at the Mech head and barely made a scratch.

"So that's the way it's been!" he shouted. "But there's a new sheriff in town!" He held up a bullet. "It's a standard bullet! Only it's got a Mech metal slug! That a forty-five?" He pointed at a fighter's hand gun.

"Captain?" the fighter called.

"Go ahead," Weaver replied. The gun was handed to Pope, who removed all of its bullets and placed the Mech bullet into it. He turned and pointed at the head. I held my breath.

"Keep watching, Hal, this is gonna be awesome," I whispered excitedly. He fired and the bullet went straight through the head. Everyone cheered. I watched Weaver and Pope have some quick words and then Weaver turned to the crowd.

"We're taking this fight to them!" he declared. More cheers erupted. I jumped up and pumped my fist in the air once, with a loud whistle. Hal was grinning happily.

"Time to die, aliens," I muttered to him. He laughed and threw an arm round my shoulders, pulling me into his side gently. I beamed widely.

**So, finally, chapter five. Not long now. Two more chapters, people. Hope you enjoyed it. **

**Beth x**


	6. Chapter 6

I was sitting with my brothers, roaring with laughter at the cartoons being played in front of us. It was just like old times, watching TV with my family. My mind flipped back to another day, many months ago.

"_AJ, you've had your hour of TV. Turn it off," Mom said, walking in. I looked up at her with big brown eyes. Matt and Ben were both at their friends' houses and Hal was at lacrosse practice. Dad was still at work. _

"_But, Mom, I haven't even finished watching ER," I protested. She sighed. _

"_Well, just this once. Move over," she ordered. I moved up and she sat beside me. I curled up with her as we both watched eagerly to find out whether Carter would live. We loved ER, although Dad got a little jealous, because Mom thought Carter was attractive. She said he looked like Dad. I liked Ray the best. I thought he was pretty hot. We didn't even hear the front door open. Dad came in. _

"_Hey," he greeted. _

"_Ssh," Mom hissed. He looked puzzled. "We're watching this." He chuckled and sat beside us. I was so happy, sitting in the middle of my parents, without a care in the world. _

I felt a hand grasp mine gently and looked up.

"You okay?" Hal asked. "You look upset."

"Just thinking," I answered.

"Well, don't strain yourself," he joked. I shoved him gently before leaning into his side.

_**Falling Skies**_

I was with Matt, Jimmy, Ben and a few other kids in the large hall. We were having a huge session of joking around and doing different forms of entertainment. Jimmy just did stand-up comedy. I got up and walked to the front of the hall. Jimmy threw the battery operated microphone to me. I grinned and switched it on.

"_If you ever find yourself stuck in the middle of the sea, I'll sail the world to find you_," I sang. I started getting into it. "_If you ever find yourself lost in the dark and you can't see, I'll be the light to guide you_." I danced over to Matt and put an arm round him. He laughed. "_Find out what we're made of, when we are called to help our friends in need_." I danced over to Pope, who'd just walked in. He just looked freaked out. I kept singing:  
"_You can count on me like 1, 2, 3,  
I'll be there,  
And I know when I need it I can count on you like 4, 3, 2,  
And you'll be there,  
Cause that's what friends are supposed to do, oh yeah.  
_

_Wooooh, Wooooh,  
Yeah, yeah._

If you toss and you turn and you just can't fall asleep,  
I'll sing a song beside you,  
And if you ever forget how much you really mean to me,  
Everyday I will remind you,

Oh,  
Find out what we're made of,  
When we are called to help our friends in need.

You can count on me like 1, 2, 3,  
I'll be there,  
And I know when I need it I can count on you like 4, 3, 2,  
You'll be there,  
Cause that's what friends are supposed to do, oh yeah.

Wooooh, Wooooh,  
Yeah, yeah.

You'll always have my shoulder when you cry,  
I'll never let go,  
Never say goodbye.

You can count on me like 1, 2, 3,  
I'll be there,  
And I know when I need it I can count on you like 4, 3, 2,  
You'll be there,  
Cause that's what friends are supposed to do, oh yeah.

Wooooh, Wooooh,  
You can count on me 'cause I can count on you." I sat beside Ben, turned off the microphone and hugged him tightly. Everyone whooped and cheered, except Pope, who was still at the back, looking scarred for life.

"I never knew you could sing." I jumped and glared at Hal, who was standing over me.

"You tryin' to give me a heart attack?" I asked.

"Nope. C'mon, Dad wants to see you," he said, holding out a hand. I took at and he pulled me to my feet.

"Later, guys," I called as we left.

"So, since when did you sing?" he asked.

"I've always sang, you were just at lacrosse every time I did," I answered. "What does Dad want?"

"No idea."

_**Falling Skies**_

As it turned out, he wanted to inform us that Weaver was abusing drugs.

"I can't believe this," Hal fumed. "For all we know he could've been dosing himself for weeks."

"That was before. Now we need to focus on today," Dad said.

"So what are we gonna do?" I asked.

"First you're gonna follow orders."

"And go on that sentry mission?" I looked up at Hal as he talked. He looked worried. Dad nodded. "There's no way I'm gonna leave you here to deal with Weaver by yourself." Dad pulled us aside.

"This isn't just about him," Dad told us.

"Dad, he's setting us up for the mother of all battles. If he's not a hundred percent he's gonna get us all killed."

"And if I accuse him by telling him he's not fit for duty without all the facts it's gonna tear the Second Mass apart."

"What more do you need to know?"

"More." He looked outside. "You remember what it was like? Before Porter brought u together, everybody out on their own, scrounging for food and water? Forget about fighting back, it was all we could do to survive. Soldiers like Weaver are a big part of what got us this far."

"You're defending him," Hal accused.

"No, I'm just saying that unless we stick together and fight the aliens as a group, we're as good as dead," he said. "And until I talk to him, we're gonna pursue it as if this mission is still a go."

"All right, I'll go on the sentry mission, AJ will help Pope make bullets and bombs, but we need another rider. Got anybody in mind?" Maggie walked over.

"Yeah. He asked, I volunteered. The no questions asked part intrigued me," she said.

"And you're sure about this?" Hal asked Dad.

"I don't see any other way," Dad answered. "Be careful." He patted Hal's shoulder before walking off.

"You'll look after him, right, squirt? Make sure he doesn't do anything dumb?"

"I can't promise that," I said. "Bear in mind I'm being forced to spend the day with Pope. Although, I could talk to Weaver and ask if I could help Scott instead. Scott's more likely to let me leave if something happens."

"Nah, you need to keep an eye on Matt, he's helping Pope too. See ya, squirt," he said. I hugged him quickly before turning to Maggie.

"Don't let him die," I warned. "Or I will come after you, and you won't like it." She laughed as they walked away. I went to find Pope.

_**Falling Skies**_

I walked into the classroom just as Pope and Anthony were getting into it.

"Lower the testosterone levels, gentlemen," I called, as I made my way over to my brother. "Hey, Mattie. Did you miss me in the twenty minutes I was gone?" Pope walked over.

"No, no, kid, look, you don't need to polish to get a shine like that," he said to Matt. "When it comes to Mech ammo, it's quantity, not quality. You sure your old man was talking about me?"

"He said stay away from Pope," Matt answered.

And unless there's another Pope around here, I'm fairly sure he meant you," I added.

"Great, suddenly I'm the beneficiary of some pre-adolescent rebellious streak," Pope muttered.

"He keeps treating you like I'm this little kid, like I can't do anything, but I wanna help too," Matt complained. "Besides, I am staying away from you, just not that far."

"You sound like one of my attorneys," he said. "Well, I guess what's the big deal. Besides, I doubt your pops is gonna do anything to the little prince of the Second Mass."

"I'm not a prince!" he protested.

"You're not the only one. There's two other little princelets. And there's a princess right there. But you're the youngest. That makes you special." He looked at me. "And you're the only girl. So what's it like, walking around with that sweet Mason brand?"

"What's it like, having hair like a girl?" Matt retorted. Pope chuckled.

"We're gonna have to work on your insults, kid." He moved away. "Ondules, ondules! Come on! We've got twelve hours! That's half a day!"

_**Falling Skies**_

I was walking down the hallway, past Scott's room, when a sudden blinding pain filled me. I clutched my head and groaned. Then it was gone. I shook my head lightly before continuing to walk. I walked to medical room to see Anne. Jimmy, Maggie and Hal were there too.

"Hal?" He turned. "What are you doing back?"

"It's Dad, AJ," he said. My stomach dropped.

"Is he hurt?" I demanded.

"Weaver's holding him in the boiler room. He asked Weaver about the drugs."

"I don't think Weaver wants to hurt your dad," Jimmy said. "I don't know why he's doing this. He's a good man."

"Good man or not, he's endangering everyone here," Anne replied.

"We've gotta get our dad," Hal said.

"Maybe I can help," Jimmy told us.

"Dr Glass?" Lourdes called.

"Hal, when you get your dad, bring him here," Anne ordered.

_**Falling Skies**_

We watched as Danner let Jimmy into the boiler room with a tray of food. We heard a commotion from inside. Jimmy let us in, just as Dad got the upper hand.

"Dad!" Hal yelped.

"Get me something to tie him up!" Dad ordered urgently. He grabbed a couple of wires and handed them to him. "What are you doing here?"

"We tried to make it to the five mile marker. Couldn't. We saw fresh signs of Skitters and Mechs," he answered.

"Tell it to Weaver?"

"First thing."

"What about the attack?"

"He didn't care. We are punching through. Dai's coming around. What are we gonna do with him?"

"Leave him," Dad replied.

"You son of a bitch," Danner growled.

"We've gotta find a way to stop Weaver," he said. I pulled a bandana from my pocket and handed it to him.

"For him," I said, nodding at Danner. "Figure you'll need it." Dad gave me a grateful smile.

_**Falling Skies**_

We walked into the medical room. Anne was over by Dai.

"He's weak, but he'll pull through," she said.

"I know you're hurting bad, but this is important, I need to know about Porter," Dad told Dai.

"The Skitters and Mechs hit," he rasped. "Porter was pinned down. Probably dead by now."

"Dead?" Jimmy repeated.

"I got hit when a Mech blew up."

"Dai, this is important," Dad said. "What were Porter's orders?"

"Gather regiments. They never reported in. Others went out, never came back. Porter said that without confirmation that the fourth and fifth were alive, the attack should be aborted."

"You told that to Captain Weaver?"

"All of it. This mission is no good."

"So we're in this alone?" Maggie asked. "Weaver sure doesn't have a problem with tall odds."

"It's not like him to disobey an order from Porter. What is he thinking?" Anne pondered.

"He's thinking he's gonna go ahead with the mission, facts on the ground be damned," Dad answered.

"How do we stop him? He's got all the fighters and all the weapons?" Hal asked.

"Most of them. Not all."

_**Falling Skies**_

We were hiding, waiting for Weaver to come in.

"Captain Weaver," Anne said.

"Dr Glass, I hear that Tom has been to see you," Weaver replied. "I need to know where he is."

"He told me what you've been going through, Captain. I'd feel a lot more comfortable if you'd put that gun down." Maggie, Hal and I began creeping forward. Weaver pointed the gun at us.

"Don't." Dad appeared from behind the curtain, holding a gun to Weaver's head. Hal took Weaver's gun.

"What are you gonna do? You gonna shoot me?" Weaver asked.

"I'm the optimist, remember? I'm still hoping that you're gonna listen to reason," Dad answered. "Now, what's the operational plan? The real one."

"Rendezvous with the fourth and fifth and launch an attack."

"Porter ordered us to stand down!"

"That's not the way I heard it."

"The mission's still a go unless the fourth and fifth –"

"We were ordered to wait for confirmation."

"Damn it!" Weaver yelled. "The aliens have to know we're not gonna lie down!"

"You think I don't wanna fight 'em?" Dad shouted. "Move. This has to be done the right way. That means all cards on the table, with a commanding officer whose judgement hasn't been compromised."

"How far are you gonna go with this?"

"Pretty far. I had Pope defuse the bombs. And if you don't back off I'm gonna be forced to relieve you of your command," he said. There was a click behind us. We all whirled round.

"Uh, uh, uh. You're fast, Maggie, but you're not that fast," Pope said. He had a gun pointed at us. "Sorry, but you may wanna reconsider that, Professor."

"Dad, what's he doing?" Hal asked. "I thought you talked to him."

"I did," Dad muttered, handing his gun over to Weaver.

"My apologies, Cambridge, but, uh, I just couldn't bring myself to defuse those charges. I figured I had a choice of sitting around or killing cooties. Cooties win, every time." Weaver held his hand out for my gun. I glared at him.

"The gun, now, Mason," he ordered. I held it out.

"Screw you," I snarled.

"You'll be happy to know that those bombs are beauts. They're gonna cause a lot of damage," Pope continued.

"No, they won't. Because when Pope came to warn you, I took the plastic fuses. Bombs are out of commission," Dad informed Weaver.

"Where are they?" Weaver demanded.

"The aliens can't kill us fast enough? We have to do it for them?" Anne asked. Weaver pulled out his gun and pointed it at Dad.

"Where are the damn fuses?"

"You said that the only way this is gonna work, is if people have faith in their commanding officer, that goes both ways. You have to have faith in them," Dad reasoned.

"I'm doing this for them. For all of us."

"All right, then tell them the truth. Tell them. Porter's gone. And that this attack, whether we live or die isn't gonna be just a command decision. We don't have enough people left for a suicide mission! Go ahead and do it. Go ahead. If shooting me keeps the Second Mass together, go ahead and do it. I'm not gonna be the one that pulls it apart."

"Don't!" I begged. "Please don't!"

"There's another way."

"What?" Weaver asked.

"If you trust our people the way they trust you."

"Captain?" I barely turned my head towards Jimmy.

"Jimmy," Weaver said.

"We wanna follow you. All of us," Anne told him. "You just have to let us." He lowered his gun slowly.

"Put down your weapon," he ordered Pope.

"What the hell are you doing?" Pope demanded.

"Lower your weapon." He put it down reluctantly. "I'm not saying your right. But they deserve to learn the facts of the mission."

"Call for volunteers. They've gotta hear both sides," Dad said.

"They will. And you'll be right there beside me. Jimmy, gather everyone in the gym. Ten minutes."

"Yes, sir."

_**Falling Skies**_

"I don't need to tell you people what's at stake, we've all been living on the edge since these alien things came. Tomorrow's assault on the structure in Boston was meant to be a first strike. A coordinated attack with the support of two other Massachusetts regiments. However, Colonel Porter lost contact with these regiments several days ago. And now it looks as if the Colonel himself might have been lost. Dai brought back the Colonel's last order. Abort the mission. Unless we can confirm the existence of these other units. We still don't know if these other units exist, or if they plan to carry out the attack. But I know that if there's a breathe left in any of those men, they will do their damndest to carry out this attack. And if that happens, despite Porter's order, the Second Mass has to be there to back them up.

"But this attack, as critical as it is, cannot be our only objective. We have a responsibility, an obligation, to protect our civilians. And sometimes, in our desire to strike back, we forget that they represent our future. So I'm asking for volunteers. I need fifty fighters for this mission. If you're with me, meet me in front." Weaver and many others left.

"Okay, everybody, let's get our gear together. We need to be ready to move out as soon as our strike team comes home," Dad ordered. I went outside to see people off. One boy walked over to me. He was tall, with long-ish black hair and blue eyes.

"You're Tom Mason's kid, right?" he asked. I looked up.

"Yeah. AJ Mason, at your service," I replied.

"AJ? What does that stand for?" I chuckled.

"Now that I'm not saying. And you are?"

"Logan Barrett, at your service," he answered. I held out my hand. He shook it gently.

"I think I like you, Logan Barrett. Do me a favour, and don't die," I said.

"I'll do my best." He walked away. I leaned forward slightly to get a good view of his butt. Yeah. It was a good butt. I heard someone clear their throat behind me and jumped.

"Dad." I groaned. "You scared me."

"It scares me that you were checking him out," he replied.

"Well, he was pretty hot," I reasoned. Suddenly a bike went past slowly.

"Hal!" Dad yelled. Hal stopped, climbed off and walked over.

"You were right about Weaver, but when you get down to it, he was right too," Hal said.

"They've got enough fighters. You don't have to do this."

"Yes, I do. I actually do. Okay, you've gotta stay here and look after the civilians, just like you've been looking after me, Matt, Ben and AJ this whole time. And I've gotta do this. For Mom, and Ben, and AJ. For Karen."

"There'll be other battles."

"Not if we don't show them we're not backing down. We've gotta hit them with everything we've got. We've gotta make them rethink this war. Weaver can get us to Boston. And once we get there, we're gonna blow that structure straight to Hell."

"Nothing I can say to you, huh?"

"You can wish me luck."

"Good luck." I watched them embrace. Hal turned to me. He reached down and placed a hand on my face, smoothing down my hair.

"Be good, okay, squirt? And if … If I don't … Look after the others, okay? Be good," he said.

"You've got it, bro," I assured him. He hugged me tightly. He went to get on his bike and rode off. Weaver came over to give us Mech bullets. I held back my tears until they were gone, before releasing them in Dad's arms. I pulled away and wiped my eyes.

"Dad! Dad, AJ, I have to talk to you," Ben said, running over with Scott. "Scott was running these tests with the transmitter on trying to see if he can block the signals, between the Skitters and Mechs."

"Yeah, how would you even know if that worked?" Dad asked.

"He wouldn't, but we were running some tests, going through the frequencies."

"And what?"

"I could hear it." I stiffened.

"Ben, where were you doing it?" I demanded.

"In Scott's room, why?" He stared at me. "Did you hear it too?" I nodded.

"I think so."

**Oooh, shocking. I should have the last chapter up by Thursday, and then hopefully, the sequel will be up by next week. So, we have suspense, and a little romance for AJ. Hope you enjoyed it, please review it, I'd love to hear what you think.**

**Beth xxx**


	7. Chapter 7

"Can you give us a second? The Skitters must have changed the frequency they're using for communications again. When we find the signal, we should be able to stop the Skitters and Mechs right in their tracks," Scott said. Anne entered. Dad walked off to talk to her. I took Ben's hand gently.

"You're a genius," I said.

"Scott is too," he replied.

"I know."

"Ah, for the love of -! The generator must've run out of gas," Scott announced. "I told those kids to make sure it was full up!"

"I think there's a spare can in the store room," Dad told him. "Ben, you wanna help me out?" They headed off, as did Anne.

"Um, Scott?"

"What's up, AJ?" he asked.

"This thing, will I feel it too?" I asked.

"I assume so," he answered. "Don't quote me on it though." There was a flash of movement. I shook it off, but turned when I felt eyes on me. I looked up. Rick had climbed the wall. I gasped.

"I won't let you hurt them," he said. He jumped on Scott, knocking him into the table, before turning to me. I took a shaking step back.

"Rick," I stammered, gulping. "Whatever you're planning on doing -" He lunged at me suddenly, throwing me at the wall. I slid down, clutching my head. I must have blacked out for a minute or two. When I opened my eyes, Ben was crouched over me.

"Wait here, I need to get Anne," he ordered. Rick was gone, the transmitter was broken, and my head hurt. Ben ran from the room and returned a minute later with Anne, who took me and Scott to the medical room. She inspected my head and gave me a cold pack.

"You're not bleeding," she said.

"Good. That would have been the icing on the cake," I replied. Dad entered as Anne was sticking up Scott's head.

"Oh, Tom, Tom, I'm glad you're here," Scott told him.

"It was Rick, wasn't it?" Ben asked.

"He's right."

"How did you know it was him?" Dad demanded.

"I just did," he murmured.

"Rick was hanging from the ceiling like some crazy bat. He must have been there a while because he knew exactly what to take in order to take out the transmitter," Scott explained. Ben looked at me.

"You're always getting hurt, have you noticed that?" he remarked.

"No, of course not, you know, I've just been kidnapped, threatened with a gun multiple times, had my wrist fractured and been pushed into a wall, but no, I hadn't noticed," I answered. He chuckled.

"Always the sarcastic one," he said.

"It's one of my quirks." I shrugged. He disappeared suddenly, running out of the room. "Ben!" I got up, threw down the cold pack and ran after him. Right to Rick's room. I followed him in. "Ben, let's go."

"Rick?" he called. "Rick, are you here?"

"I knew you were coming." I whirled round to face Rick. Ben grabbed his shirt and pushed him into the wall gently.

"Why'd you hurt Scott and my sister?"

"To get this," Rick answered, holding up the transmitter piece. He tried to grab it but Rick pushed him aside. "No, Ben, he's trying to keep them away, remember?"

"If you give back the part, he'll forgive you," Ben reasoned. "They know you're confused because of the harness."

"I know you can hear them too. Both of you."

"I want them out of my head."

"Why? Ben, they're better than the humans. We can be a part of that. Ben, I want the harness back."

"What?"

"I can tell you want it too. Come with me," he pleaded. "We'll find them. We'll find them together." Ben went to the door.

"Help! Help! Get my dad!" Rick climbed out of the window. I clambered out too and sped after him.

"Rick, stop!" I shouted.

"He's gonna warn the Skitters, don't let him get away! He's gonna warn the Skitters! Stop him! Stop him!" I could hear Ben yelling. Dad tried to grab him, but he flew through the air and over a car. I vaulted over the car too.

"RICK! STOP!" I bellowed again. I followed him round a corner, and heard a gunshot, but I didn't stop running. I followed Rick to a marsh, and lost him. I wandered aimlessly, hoping for an indication of where he was. "Rick? Rick!"

"No, wait!" I heard after a few minutes. I ran towards the noise. "I told you all I know! All I wanna do is come back!"

As I pushed my way through the foliage, I saw Rick on the ground. Dad was approaching at the same time I was.

Dad asked, "Rick, who are you talking to out here?"

"She left me," he answered weakly. "They left me. I only wanted to be with them, but they didn't care."

I made my way forward slowly. "Rick, are there skitters near here?" I queried.

He kept his eyes cast down. "I'm not one of them," he muttered. He turned his head to look at Dad. "I'm not one of you. I don't wanna live like this anymore. Just go ahead and … why not? Shoot me."

Dad looked stunned. "What?"

"Isn't that why you followed me here, Tom? To kill me?" he replied.

"No," he said, placing a hand on Rick's back. "I came to take you home."

"But I really miss my dad," he sobbed.

A lump rose in my throat. "It's okay, we understand," I told him.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

Dad shook his head. "It's okay. Nobody deserves this," he assured him.

Rick sat up. "No, I'm sorry, I thought they loved me. All they wanted was information," he admitted.

"Rick, what did you tell them?" he demanded.

"I told them everything," he answered. "The school, Weaver, you … everything."

Dad pulled him to his feet. "Come on," he muttered. He looked up at me. "AJ, we have to go. Now. Come on."

I nodded. "Okay," I croaked.

_**Falling Skies**_

Anne and Lourdes met Dad, Rick and I halfway to the clinic.

"You found him," Anne exclaimed.

"Yeah," Dad said. "Take him to the clinic."

Scott ran over. Dad handed him the missing piece of the transmitter. "I need you to get that transmitter up and running as soon as possible," he told him. "AJ, you and Ben are gonna help him."

I nodded. "Got it," I said.

He pulled me in and kissed me on the head. "Thanks, sweetheart."

"No problem." I ran after Uncle Scott. "Hey, Dad's assigned me and Ben to helping you out with the transmitter." I was gonna help bring these bastards down, no matter what.

_**Falling Skies**_

"I'm surprised Rick held onto it," Scott remarked. "It would have been just as easy to smash it."

"Maybe he wasn't as far-gone as we thought," Dad replied.

"Well, we just gotta make it work. During battle, no pressure. You ready to give it another go?"

Ben and I exchanged a look before nodding.

Dad checked his watch. "We've got eight minutes and then you two go into the tunnel," he informed us.

Scott looked surprised. "Tom, they're keyed into the communications grid," he stated.

"I know, so find the frequency and start jamming."

"But they keep changing the frequency!"

"I said they could stay to find the frequency and that's it. Now you've got seven minutes."

He started to walk away, but Ben exclaimed, "We can do this, Dad!"

Dad turned back to him. "I know you can, but if this attack comes, I don't want you here."

"What if they change the frequency again? Scott will never find it!" he declared.

"I'm sorry, Tom, but he's right. This is our one shot, and if this doesn't work, it won't matter where any of us go," Scott reasoned.

"Dad, I know what they're saying about me, Rick and AJ, that we're infected by these harnesses, but we can use what they did to get back at them. You have to let us," Ben pleaded.

Maggie appeared in the doorway. "Scouts had Mechs within a mile," she informed Dad.

He started to run after her. "If I say run, you run," he ordered. "Find it!"

Then we got down to business.

_**Falling Skies**_

Ben was looking out of the window.

"Anything?" Scott asked.

"The Mech's still coming," he answered.

Scott ran to the window. "Damn thing must have changed the frequency," he muttered.

We watched as it was shot at until it went down. "Shut the front door," I whispered. "That's one less Mech to worry about."

Then the ground started to shake again.

"Ben, come on," Scott ordered, searching for the frequency. My eyes widened as I stared out of the window.

"Guys," I called, "you might wanna hurry. That's a fair few Mechs."

I felt a few twinges of pain in my head until the real pain came along. I grabbed my head. "Oh, God!" I cried out. I looked up. "They're still coming!"

"We've got the frequency, maybe the signal's not strong enough," Scott suggested.

Ben looked panicked. "Can we make it stronger?" he asked.

He thought for a moment. "The generator's maxed out. Maybe an antenna."

"How about the flagpole?" Ben queried.

"Well, it's metal."

Scott attached giant wires to the transmitter, and Ben climbed out of the window. "Ben! Get one of the fighters!"

"There's no time! There's more Mechs coming! I can hear them!" he said.

I called out, "Hurry up!" I watched anxiously as Dad helped him to connect the wires to the flagpole.

Suddenly the pain became to intense. I dropped to my knees, letting out a blood-curdling scream. When I looked up, the Mechs were running away. "We did it!" I murmured. "We did it!"

I clambered out of the window and threw my arms around Ben and Dad.

"Good job, you two," Dad said.

I grinned. "It was all Ben."

_**Falling Skies**_

Ben and I ventured outside with Dad.

"Aw, this must be really messing their heads up," Ben remarked. "The frequency's still locked in place." Hal was helping Scott load the transmitter into a car. "I just hope they were feeling as crappy as we are."

"I know what mean," I groaned, rubbing my forehead.

Scott told Dad, "Okay, so I connected the leads up to the car, which means this car's one big antenna. Get the generator full of gas and you're good to go."

"Will it be enough for me to hold them off of me until I get to the city?" Dad asked.

Ben said what I was thinking. "What if they change the frequency again?"

Dad just answered with, "Let's hope that they don't."

"Dad, I can do this, I can help you."

"You already did," he said.

Hal handed Dad a map. "So, I drew the route that we took to get down there but we should reconsider. You could bring me with you," he told him.

He sighed. "No. I need to know that you're safe and that you're looking out for your brothers and AJ," he answered.

We all looked down, before he pulled us into a hug.

"I love you," he told us.

I felt a couple of tears sliding down my cheeks and swiped at them as we pulled away.

"Ignore me. I'm just being a pussy," I muttered.

He thumbed away a tear. "Make sure they don't go too crazy, okay?" he asked.

I gulped and nodded. "Yeah, Dad, you know I will," I replied.

Then, after a final goodbye, he got in the car and left.

_**Falling Skies**_

When Weaver finally returned in the early hours of the morning, Dad wasn't there.

I was asleep when Weaver returned. Sleeping in our temporary camp with my brothers around me.

It was Hal's shouts that woke me.

"What's going on?" I asked, as I approached Hal. He was being held back by Maggie. No one answered me. "Hey! What is happening? Where's Dad?"

Hal gave me a pained look. "AJ," he croaked.

I shook my head wildly. "No. No, he can't be dead. He can't be!" I declared. Tears welled up and threatened to spill over.

"He climbed on board an enemy ship," Weaver told me softly.

"He - No. He can't have done. He wouldn't!" I insisted.

"He did it for you and Ben," he explained.

It was like a dam broke. My knees buckled and fell. I tumbled to the ground in a sobbing heap and screamed until my throat burned.

After everything we'd been through … those things still saw fit to take more from me. And I would get revenge.

**Boom, baby! And that's it for part one! I know how long this has taken, but it's here now. It has arrived! Did you miss it? Hopefully, the next part in the AJ saga will arrive soon. Until then, adios, and I love you! Bye!**

**Beth xxxxxxx**


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